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The NHL and NHL Players' Association have turned to a dangerous game of chicken with the season on the line.

Who blinks first?

NHLPA special counsel Steve Fehr did reach out to NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly for a short telephone conversation Tuesday, but no talks are scheduled even though both told QMI Agency Saturday they're prepared to bargain.

Daly said in an email to QMI Agency Tuesday that NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr is trying to bide his time to see if he can get his best deal for the players when the loss of the whole regular season is truly on the line.

But Daly also admitted a meeting wouldn't solve much because the NHL isn't going to go any further than the offer tabled two weeks ago in New York as the massive losses continue to mount for both sides.

"It disappoints me and saddens me because it's just more days lost," wrote Daly. "But, I'm not sure what meeting does from our side. There is nothing left to give and its clear Don is aiming toward a 'deadline' showdown."

Whether the league is going to give Fehr a deadline is up in the air. There has been talk Bettman is getting ready to give Fehr a "drop-dead" date to save a 48-game schedule in the near future. It may be required to get back to the table.

NHL officials believe Fehr has told the players to be patient and the NHL will bend.

The league and the players have not held any formal talks since a conference call Friday to discuss transition and compliance issues. During the call, both sides refused to give and haven't really discussed the issues since.

Not long after the two sides hung up, the landscape of the talks for a collective bargaining agreement changed when it was revealed the players are voting this week to give the executive board permission to dissolve the union.

Needing a two-thirds majority to have the ability to file a disclaimer of interest in an attempt to challenge anti-trust laws in the United States, the players started casting ballots Sunday and the results will be known Friday.

Knowing the players were going this route, the NHL filed a class-action suit in a New York court Friday afternoon -- stacked full of evidence to the contrary -- to try to block any attempt by the players to file the disclaimer.

"I hope they don't (file the disclaimer) but I expect they will," said Daly.

Since all games have been cancelled through Dec. 30, the NHL will likely have to axe another batch through Jan. 15 later this week. The league has held off taking down the 13 games scheduled for New Year's Eve.

The players believe they have run out of options.

"The approach by the NHL has been 'my way or the highway'," said a source on the union side. "The NHLPA has been left with no choice but to go this route."

Actually, they could negotiate, but both sides are stuck in their positions and neither wants to give. The concern is they are playing a game of brinksmanship and if a deal isn't done soon, there isn't going to be a season.

The players, who missed their fifth paycheque of the season Saturday and have lost more than $84 million in salary, can't believe the battle is ongoing.

"I shake my head and wonder why we're even at this point," Penguins captain Sidney Crosby told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review after skating Tuesday.

"There's no reason for it. For some reason, even if there's no way we can make a deal at the moment, we should still be talking every day. I don't understand it."

The issue is, there is no point in talking if the two sides don't have anything to say to each other.

NHL CBA negotiations now a game of chicken?

Both sides say they're ready to bargain. Still, no talks planned.

The NHL and NHL Players' Association have turned to a dangerous game of chicken with the season on the line.

Who blinks first?

NHLPA special counsel Steve Fehr did reach out to NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly for a short telephone conversation Tuesday, but no talks are scheduled even though both told QMI Agency Saturday they're prepared to bargain.